1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to testers for multiple interface ports and more particularly, to a multi-port interface between an interface port tester and a plurality of simultaneously connected interface ports.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There are many instances during the testing phase of electronic systems wherein interface ports must be tested both for the mechanical connection between an interface cable and an interface port, as well as of the interface port logic or circuitry itself.
Often times a unit under test such as a control panel or interface includes a large number of interface ports. It is not uncommon, for example, for a unit under test to include eight or more interface ports. The prior art method of testing such ports requires that the individual performing the test connect a test cable to one interface port at a time, initialize a computer to perform the test, then disconnect the cable from the tested interface port and reconnect the cable to a subsequent interface port to be tested.
In addition to the time consuming nature of this method, much manpower and time are wasted in both connecting and disconnecting the interface cables from the interface ports to be tested. Moreover, due to the tremendous amount of time expended in connecting and disconnecting the cables, a given interface port is typically tested only once. Oftentimes, the testing of an interface port only once does not give a true indication of the true reliability of the interface port.
Accordingly, what is needed is a multi-port tester interface which can simultaneously connect one port of a tester with ports on a plurality of units under test, and which can automatically select a port to be tested and initialize the port tester to begin testing the selected interface port, while subsequently moving on to other sequentially selected interface ports.